Steven Edwards began learning to use MIDI and MOD trackers to make music, later learning to use loop-based music software. He also recorded cassettes of improvised music made with the DJ minigame in Game Boy Camera. He began publishing more "polished" tracks online under names such as DJ2600, Bigsteveo, and Mr Steveo. Almost none of these tracks are extant, however a few were recreated years later under the We Are X-Treme name.
Steven started an experimental electronic project called We Are X-Treme in summer 2005, shortly before starting his junior year of high school. We Are X-Treme mainly drew influence from video game music and plunderphonics, as well as 90s electronic music and golden age rap. However, the project was also influenced by the DIY ethic and lo-fi production of hardcore-punk and grindcore. Non-musical influences such as internet memes and retro video games were more present in later works.
Four songs were produced and released in 2005. The songs "OMG U Got Owned" and "Fuck You, You're A Stupid Dick" were released on MySpace in September. "Trick Or Treat" and "Let Harnage Begin (Xmas is Over)" were released on October 31 and December 26, respectively. The former track was featured in one of Steven's Flash-animated shorts. A music video for the latter was planned, but never actually went into production. Both tracks were collaborations with friends who were also learning to make music on computers. This trend would continue with nearly every We Are X-Treme track. Through the following year, We Are X-Treme only produced occasional singles as Steven was focusing on his animation projects at the time. Shortly after his 18th birthday, Steven started the Harn Music netlabel. The eight-track EP, "HARNAGE", was released online and in CD-R format in November 2006. Steven announced on the group's MySpace blog there would be a full-length album the following spring. During this time, he was occasionally working on PalakaPod's "Hyper-World" album, also slated for a spring release. Both groups decided to release the album in late May, around the same time of the members' high school graduation.
The new album was originally planned to take up three CD-Rs or CD image files. skits would have served as interludes between tracks. Influenced by Negativland, Steven planned to include long sound collages to serve as the intro and outro to each disc. However, due to a hard drive crash and lack of time, the sound collages were never finished and ten potential tracks were lost. The album was reduced to be only a double-length instead of a triple-length. Not enough skit material was recorded, and eventually the album was restructured to fit on one disc. PalakaPod's "Hyper-World" and We Are X-Treme's self-titled album were both released in May 2007, shortly before the high school graduation of the members of both groups. Copies of both albums were distributed via CD-R, direct download, BitTorrent and other P2P networks. On the five-year anniversary of the release of both albums, they were uploaded to the Internet Archive and several physical copies on CD-R and cassette were distributed. Physical copies were distributed in the Greater Kansas City and Lawrence area, as well as in Emporia, Kansas.
Steven released a half-hour mix of video game remixes under the name Romhack in July 2007. We Are X-Treme went on hiatus before releasing a demo named "Bummer" in December. The project was offically ended on New Years Eve. Steven immediately began working on Issowa. We Are X-Treme songs would later be remixed, and several "reunion" attempts were made.
Steven began employing more live instrumentation in his music. While a few We Are X-Treme songs had guitar or piano in the composition, Issowa focused much more on this element. An EP titled "Shitville Kansas" was recorded in February 2008. The EP was originally meant to be one song. The track featured the use of prepared guitars, alternate tunings, and modified amps over lo-fi field recordings. Issowa also produced the single "Out Of Your Head" while finishing "Shitville Kansas".
An EP of video game remixes titled "VGEP" and a mixtape titled "In The Land Of Issowa" were released in July 2008. Production of a full-length album began in earnest the following month. The recording was delayed due to Steven going to school and working full-time. Many unfinished tracks were lost due to a hard drive crash and the album was cancelled before it was even announced. The three remaining demos were included on KSBP's Oldies compilation.
Steven began to shift Issowa towards hardcore-punk, noise, and garage rock. In January 2009, he recorded "Let's Get Fucked Up" with the assistance of a friend he was visiting in Lawrence, Kansas. More demos for a punk album were recorded in the following months. However, a hard drive and a flash drive containing the masters were stolen. Issowa had eventually been abandoned as a project as of September 2009.
After taking a brief hiatus from music, Steven began recording music under a few different names. In addition to re-using the Mr Steveo name, he began producing music under the names EOS and Euphoric Generation. EOS was an attempt to blend electronic pop music with industrial, noise, and dark ambient. The project was short-lived. However, an album and an EP were released shortly before Steven ended the project. The project's flagship track "0s" was released as a digital single near the end of October. This was the first track that Steven released for donation. The EOS album and the "Reason EP" were released in November. The project officially ended after the release of the "Reason EP". Steven has considered bringing the project back since summer 2010, and even began recording demos in earnest four years later. The demos were lost when the MacBook's hard drive they were stored on crashed in spring 2015.
The Euphoric Generation project was created in November 2009 as a way to produce longer experimentations with electronic music. The first single to be released was "Dexedream", which reached over twenty-one minutes in length, shortly after his twenty-first birthday. Euphoric Generation's releases that followed were heavily influenced by The Orb's "Adventures Beyond The Ultraworld", The KLF's "Chill Out", and Jimmy Cauty's "Space". More coming soon!
Coming soon!
Coming soon!